Bose big on blocks in area return

February 7, 2012

When she played at Murray County Central High School, Emily Bose always found a way to make an impact, finishing her high school career with 2,068 points, 1,166 rebounds and 506 blocks.

Returning to the Marshall area Saturday with the Augustana women's basketball team, Bose wasn't able to get up on the scoreboard. But that didn't stop the redshirt freshman from finding another way to make her presence felt.

Coming off the bench for 20 minutes, Bose grabbed four rebounds and had a game-high five blocks, helping the Vikings hold Southwest Minnesota State to 34 percent shooting in a 71-61 victory.

"It was good coming back. A lot of people from my hometown haven't got to see me play," said Bose, who is averaging 3.8 points and 2.8 rebounds in 10.9 minutes.

"One of my high school friends texted me, 'Oh, I finally get to see you play (Saturday).'"

Playing about 35 miles away from her hometown of Hadley, Bose transformed her homecoming into a block party.

"Blocking is something I really pride myself in," Bose said afterwards. "Scoring, you can make excuses like 'Oh, they fouled me,' but if the refs didn't call it, it's not a foul. You just got to realize you'll have those nights and do better next time.

"If you can't do it on offense, do it on defense. There's always something you can do."

And in her first season of action, the 6-foot post continues to find ways to help Augustana, who was ranked 25th in the country going into last weekend's Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference series.

"It's nice to get back into the flow of playing. Redshirting was a good decision for me, but also, it's a whole year of not playing, so it's good to get back into it," Bose said. "It's a big learning experience, but I like it a lot and I'm learning every day and hopefully I can take what I learn and keep getting better."

Going into Saturday's game against the Mustangs, Augustana was reeling after a 98-95 overtime loss at Minnesota State-Mankato. The loss snapped a 10-game win streak for the Vikings, who are second in the NSIC with a 14-3 conference record (17-4 overall).

In Friday's loss, Bose dropped 12 points and had eight rebounds and three blocks in 21 minutes.

Bose continues to learn the ropes in Division II. And if this past weekend was any indication, her experience will translate into more minutes.

"It's all about positivity and we need to focus on getting our energy back," Bose said. "The best thing we can do from that loss is learn from it and go from there. Focus on each game, don't overlook anybody."